The Physician's Tale is one of the Canterbury Tales written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century. Canterbury Tales Woodcut 1484 The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century (two of them in prose, the rest in verse). ... Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902. ... This 14th-century statue from south India depicts the gods Shiva (on the left) and Uma (on the right). ...

This is a domestic drama about the relationship between a daughter and her father and it is one of the earliest extant poems in English about such subjects and relationships. The tale comes from the Histories of Titus Livius and is retold in The Romance of the Rose, John Gower's Confessio Amantis which Chaucer drew on for inspiration along with the biblical story of Jephtha. Most of the other versions of the story focused on the cruel and arbitrary officials but Chaucer was far more concerned with the daughter as the central figure. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Ab Urbe Condita is a monumental history of Rome, from its founding (Ab urbe condita, dated to 753 BC by Varro and most modern scholars). ... Titus Livius (around 59 BC - 17 AD), known as Livy in English, wrote a monumental history of Rome, Ab Urbe Condita, from its founding (traditionally dated to 753 BC). ... The Roman de la Rose is a late medieval French work of fiction in allegorical dream form. ... The tomb of John Gower in Southwark Cathedral. ... Confessio Amantis (The Lovers Confession) is a 33,000-line Middle English poem by John Gower, which uses the confession made by an ageing lover to the chaplain of Venus as a frame story for a collection of shorter narrative poems. ... Jephtha (יפתח) is a character in the Old Testament who served as one of the Judges in Israel for a period of six years (Judges 12:7) between the conquest of Canaan and the first king. ...

Verginius, a nobleman of Rome, has a beautiful, fourteen year old daughter Verginia. She is spotted one day by a judge, Apius, who decides he must have her and forms a plan. His accomplice, Claudius, claims in court that Verginia is his run-away slave and Apius decrees that her real father must relinquish her to the court. Verginius goes home and tells his daughter he must kill her to protect her honour and when she seemingly resigns herself to her fate and swoons, he cuts her head off. He takes her head to the court and when Apius demands his execution for murder the populace rises up and instead deposes the corrupt official. Apius kills himself in gaol but Verginius shows mercy and only has Claudius exiled. City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Area  - City Proper  1285 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,553,873 almost 4,300,000 1. ... Verginia was the subject of an almost certainly apocryphal story of Ancient Rome, related in Livys Ab Urbe Condita, designed to show the evil character of the decemvir Appius Claudius. ... Appius Claudius (PW 123) was a decemvir of the Roman Republic ca 451 BC. Despite being of patrician descent, he supported the plebeian wish for a code of laws, and while in office shared power with their representatives. ...

Although difficult to date like most of Chaucer's tales, the Physician’s tale is usually regarded as an early work of Chaucer probably written before much of the rest of the Canterbury Tales was begun. The long, and rather distracting, digression on governesses possibly alludes to a historical event and may serve to date it. In 1386 Elizabeth, the daughter of John of Gaunt, eloped to France with John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke. The governess of Elizabeth was Katherine Swynford who was also Gaunt's mistress and later wife. Chaucer's very careful, mollifying words on the difficult job and the virtues of governesses seem to be a very canny political move. Events Battle of Sempach: Swiss safeguard independence from Habsburg rule End of reign of Poland by Capet-Anjou family. ... John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (June 24, 1340 - February 3, 1399), the third surviving son of King Edward III of England, gained his name because he was born at Ghent in 1340. ... John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke (October 1372 – December 30, 1389), was the son of John Hastings, 2nd Earl of Pembroke and Anne Manny, 2nd Baroness Manny. ... Coat of arms designed for Katherine Swynford: three gold Catherine wheels (roet means wheel) on a red background. ...

The story is considered one of the moral tales, along with the Parson's tale and the Knight's tale although the moral at the end seems rather at odds with the rest of the story. It warns against sin affecting everyone but it is the innocent daughter who suffers suggesting that punishment for sin is arbitrary. The Host enjoys the tale and feels for the daughter but asks the Pardoner for a more merry tale. The Pardoner obliges and his tale has a similar but contrasting moral message. This is the last tale from Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales. ... The Knights Tale is the first tale from Geoffrey Chaucers The Canterbury Tales. ... The Pardoners Tale is one of The Canterbury Tales. ...

External links

• Read "The Physician's Tale" with interlinear translation